At NATO meeting, Blinken promotes military aid, energy assistance for Ukraine

The meeting comes as Ukraine expresses hope in joining NATO.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte prior to the NATO meeting Tuesday in Brussels to discuss "concrete steps to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia's aggression and strengthening NATO partnerships in the Middle East, North Africa and Sahel regions," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in an online announcement.

Many nations are invested in NATO, including new members Finland and Sweden, which Blinken said makes NATO "stronger than ever because we all know it's the best guarantee against war, the best means to prevent conflict, the best means to ensure collective security," Blinken said.

Rutte hosted the meeting with Blinken and said Ukraine is the focus of the two-day NATO meeting in Brussels.

"We know that the situation on the battlefield is difficult," Rutte said. "We have to do everything we can to get more military aid into Ukraine."

The meeting between Blinken and Rutte occurred prior to the NATO foreign ministers meeting, during which Blinken and Rutte welcomed Jordan's King Abdullah II to his first participation in the meeting.

Adbullah's participation in the Foreign Ministers Meeting is an "integral step for increasing cooperation with NATO's southern partners," Miller said.

"Both sides underscored the importance of allies working collectively to promote security and stability throughout the Euro-Atlantic in the lead up to the Hague Summit in June," Miller added.

Prior to his meeting with Rutte, Blinken said NATO has "a new determination ... to continue to stand with Ukraine faced with the Russian aggression but also to deal with a myriad of other threats and challenges."

Blinken said he share's Rutte's concern over "ongoing aggression" against Ukraine by Russia.

"That only reinforces our determination to make sure that Ukraine has what it needs to deal with what it's facing on the battlefield, also to deal with the ongoing onslaught on its energy infrastructure," Blinken said.

"Once again, [Russian President Vladimir] Putin [is] weaponizing winter, trying to freeze people out of their homes [and] turn out the lights," Blinken said. "We're not going to let that happen."

Blinken said he and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha met in Brussels on Tuesday and signed a memorandum of understanding in which the United States will provide Ukraine with $825 million in energy assistance.

Russia has increased its strikes against Ukraine's energy infrastructure throughout the nation to disrupt power deliver during the winter months and erode the morale of Ukrainian citizens, The Moscow Times reported.

Russia launched missile and long-range drone attacks targeting 13 regions across Ukraine on Thursday and left more than a million people without electricity and disrupted water and transportation services in some locales, UN News reported.

The United Nations on Friday urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to cease missile and long-range drone attacks on Ukraine's power network that have "heightened serious concerns about the plight of civilians facing a winter of hardship and misery."

The two-day NATO meeting in Brussels comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he might be willing to cede Russian-occupied portions of Ukraine to Russia in exchange for membership in NATO for the rest of Ukraine.

Zelenksy said Ukraine joining NATO could end the "hot phase" of the war that began when Russian invaded areas in eastern Ukraine in February 2022.